Color: Short-finned Pilot Whales are mainly black, with a lighter grey saddle behind the dorsal fin. The saddle is distinctive mark in the wild. A lightly pigmented blaze is present behind the eye. A light chevron may be present behind the blowhole on the neck. Many animals also have a lighter anchor-shaped patch on the chest. Immature animals are primarily grey.

Short finned Pilot Whales have a robust body, with a thick and bulbous head, the front of which in mature males is flattened or squarish. The upper lip is slightly protruding. The flippers are falcate, and they are about 1/6th or less of the body length. The fin is low, and the tail flukes have a concave trailing edge deeply notched in the center. There are7-9 pairs of peg-like teeth in each jaw. The Long finned Pilot Whale, in contrast, has 8-12 pairs in each jaw. Its flippers are 1/5th of the body length or more.

An interesting observation of the species is that the female becomes senile at the age of 35 years, yet continues to suckle young up to 15 additional years thereby giving their calves a reproductive edge.

The Short-finned Pilot Whale is rarely seen alone, and groups of 8 or many more are formed. There are said to be generally 40 animals in a pod. The species is quite indifferent to shipping, and can be approached very close in small boats. Disturbed Pilot Whales at sea will spy hop, rising high out of water. They peer around the side of the melon at the intruder, as they cannot see anything directly ahead.

Similar species: The Long-finned Pilot Whales Globicephala melaena, which does not occur in Indian waters, is very similar to this species. May be confused with Long finned pilot whale (Globicephala melas), for its long flipper. Also the dorsal fin of short finned pilot whale is more falcate.

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